


That Calm before the Storm

by Thessian



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Smut, Mass Effect 2, Shakarian - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-09-07 03:59:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8782054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thessian/pseuds/Thessian
Summary: A multi-chapter fic about Garrus and Shepard's final romance scene before heading through the Omega 4 relay in Mass Effect. Based on my Shepard Artemis Shepard (who ill probably do more stuff with later who knows.) Lots of feelings.This is my first try at fan fiction so yeah... lol.





	

Chapter One

 

All the final pieces were set in motion, and there was no going back. Shepard sat up from her desk after spending the past hour and half rechecking all the specs for hitting the Collector base. Doing so didn’t really ease her anxiety, but reading all the cold hard numbers over and over allowed her to somehow feel more numb to the situation. Her mind was then able to wander to other less grand and dire, more personal matters, and she readily welcomed the distraction.

She thought about the private rendezvous she and Garrus has scheduled in her quarters for the next couple hours. Little flutters of both excitement and anxiety swirled through her stomach. _How silly_ , she thought, _the fate of the galaxy rides on me, my crew has been kidnapped and their lives are in jeopardy, and I’m worrying about doing …this. With Garrus, the person I trust most of all things. Ha, I’m kinda the worst._ She began to unbutton her top as she approached her personal bathroom. _Maybe a shower will get my head on straight._

Garrus felt strange moving about the Normandy without his heavy armor on.  Along with being a source of physical protection, his armor served as a symbol to himself that he was a capable combat engineer, he knew what he was doing, and he wouldn’t let anything get in his way. Now in suit he was vulnerable, though he kept his visor on in hopes that it minimize his feeling of exposure. His uniform was of a sleek and respectable design, and the blue of the fabric complemented the blue of his facial markings. His mandibles wavered as he caught his reflection in the sheen of the Normandy’s metal walls. _Spirits, I can do this. I want this and she wants this. Hell, I’ve done all the “research” I could do._  Garrus walked towards the main gunnery, where he had stashed some Thessian white wine that he’d picked up the last time they stopped at the Citadel. _Thinking of it as “research” makes it seem so dirty and clinical. What word would make it sound less like… that._ Once he entered the main battery, he was taken aback by a voice.

“My, looking good Garrus.”

Garrus turned around to unexpectedly see Kasumi warmly smiling at him, leaning against the wall with her arms comfortably folded.

“Heh, you know me.  Gotta keep myself looking sharp for what may be our final moments.” He scratched the side of his face, revealing slight embarrassment that was desperately trying to be hidden. _How does she just appear like that…?_

“Of course of course, well I’m sure you’ll make the most of these ‘final moments.’” She nodded slightly, pushed herself up from the wall and walked past him to exit the room, all while still maintaining a smug and amicable eye contact. “Well, good luck.”

            “Ah… same to you.” Garrus clumsily nodded, then turned to grab the bottle of wine from under the desk. _Wait, good luck on what?_  From there, all that was left to do was enter the elevator and make his way to Shepard’s room.

            Shepard was in the bathroom having her makeup compact VI apply her mascara when she heard the knock at her door (writers note: yes I made up makeup compact VI I just feel like that’d totally be a thing in the future it’d be a lot quicker and no more stabbing yourself in the eye with your eyeliner LOL.) She pressed down the front of her dress as she walked out of the bathroom to face the entrance of her room. The automatic door opened and behind it stood her well-dressed turian companion.

            “Heyy. I brought wine. Best I could afford on a vigilante’s salary.” Garrus spoke with a warm and familiar voice that discreetly helped sooth Shepard’s premeditated anxiety about this encounter. She smiled at him fondly, tucking her hair behind her ear before folding her arm’s across her chest. Garrus was no expert on human attire, but he could tell that the dress she was wearing wasn’t something for ordinary occasions. The silky black fabric hugged the contours of her body allowing her legs, arms, and upper chest to be largely exposed. The glimmering of a silver necklace caught his eye for a moment, but then a worry came into his mind that perhaps it was somehow offensive to stare at a human woman’s necklace, so he darted his eyes up to hers. _The vids said it’s rude to stare at a human woman’s breasts, and that necklace is sort of in that general area, so… better safe than sorry._ Mildly flustered, Garrus rushed over to the stereo on Shepard’s wall and turned it on, trying to then sway his body to the rhythm of the music. _Damn, this is club music. Is that really appropriate for this situation? Well, I guess I’m just gonna roll with it._

Shepard smiled harder as she restrained herself from laughing, patting Garrus on the arm and reassuring him that he was doing fine. _Wow, I thought I was nervous about this. Somehow seeing him stripping his usual cool demeanor makes me feel more confident._ She slowly edged towards him by the fish tank in her room, as he cleared his throat and spoke in a deeper, raspier than usual tone, “If you were a turian, I’d be complimenting your waist or your fringe. So… your, uh, hair looks good. And your waist is… very supportive.” Shepard was trying even harder not to laugh now. _Fuck, he’s so cute._

Garrus glanced to the side and scratched his mandible. “Ah, hopefully that’s not offensive in human culture. Crap. I knew I should have watched more vids. Throw me a line here, Shep-“

“Whoaa heyy! Consider me seduced, smooth talker.” Shepard chimed in a playful but sincere tone, gently brushing her hand against Garrus’ shoulder. “Now shut up and stop worrying.” _So cute…_ She thought to herself again. _And here I thought I’d be the one making a fool of myself. I mean, I guess there’s still time for that._ She lightly chuckled and turned slightly towards the stereo and turned the music off, then returned her focus to Garrus.

Garrus, while largely relieved by Shepard’s warm and open demeanor towards him, felt himself freeze in place. _Stop worrying. Ok. How do I stop worrying?_ He tried to collect his thoughts. Why did this matter so much to him? Why was he so worried in the first place? What was it about Shepard and all the events leading up to this moment that got to him so much? _Fuck, now I’m just worrying about myself worrying._

“I just…ah, I’ve seen so many things go wrong, Shepard.  My work at C-Sec, what happened with Sidonis…” Garrus’ tone softened and he diverted his gaze. Shepard looked at him intently, waiting patiently for him to continue speaking. In that moment he was so genuine, so vulnerable. Shepard respected the hell out of him, and she trusted him with her life. She valued his input and cherished his company, and in that moment, she wanted nothing but for Garrus to open up to her. She felt a yearning in her chest to just, embrace him.

“I want something to go right. Just once. Just…” Shepard moved closer to him, caressing the side of his face where his scar was. Garrus’ honest words moved in her. She had been worried that her initial advances came off as concerned with a strictly physical connection, due to the fact that she herself had been afraid of revealing her own vulnerability to him. But hearing that tenderness in his voice greatly assured her that maybe he wanted the same thing. She moved even closer to him, until their faces were mere inches apart. Both of them thought about how this was the closest they had ever been to a member the different species. They looked into each other’s eyes for a moment, then Garrus closed his eyes and began to ease his head down and forward, to which Shepard responded with the same action. She, however, kept her eyes open as to watch him. Garrus was much taller than she was, and he leaned himself over just a bit more until his crest met her forehead.

After a couple moments passed, he opened his eyes to gaze down at her torso, and he hesitantly extended his arm so that his could caress the length of hers. This was the first time Garrus had ever initiated physical contact with her, and they were both aware of it. He respected her more than anything, he had learned so much from her, and he thought her to be perhaps the strongest person in the galaxy. To actually be reaching out and touching her was utterly unreal. Her arms were so soft, and the rest of her looked even softer.

In response to Garrus’ gesture, Shepard felt a buzzing heat rise through her throat, making it difficult to swallow. For so long she had wanted some kind of physical contact from him. The closest she had ever gotten was that time a bartender on Omega tried to poison her and she woke up to Garrus leaning over her concerned. _Getting poisoned really shouldn’t be remembered as a romantic encounter, but with the way the past couple years have been…_ Shepard glanced down as she smiled to herself. Garrus skimmed her face and noticed how her cheeks puffed up when she grinned. He found something sweet about it. Without really thinking, he stroked Shepard’s cheek with his talons, which caused her to smile ever harder, which then resulted in even puffier cheeks. _Wow, Humans are… Shepard is… So soft._ Garrus let out a pleased hum, and Shepard was enthused by it _._

“You know, you have a really nice voice, Garrus.” Shepard cooed, as she reached her arms around him, resting them on either side of his head. “I mean, I always appreciate hearing what you have to say, but that voice definitely doesn’t hurt the experience.”

Garrus laughed softly. She wasn’t the first person to tell him that, but he relished in the idea that on at least one of the many deadly missions the two had gone on together there had been a point where the Great Commander Shepard was actively admiring his voice while he was giving her tactical advice.

“Well, as it turns out you might just be lucky enough to hear it in… new circumstances this evening.”

“Oh? I think I’d like that.”

Garrus knew what was coming. The first kiss. Because of the way their mouths were designed, kissing between turians didn’t have quite the same effect as it would with a human or an asari. But Garrus wanted to kiss her, and he wanted to kiss her right. He had specifically watched videos on human-turian kissing in hopes that he would be able to give Shepard one to cherish, or at least one not to be physically damaged by. First, Garrus situated his arms around her waist, and in response Shepard pushed her body closer to his. Their faces were now only a couple inches apart. Garrus tilted his head slightly, closed his eyes, and cautiously moved his mouth towards her lips. He wasn’t quite sure what to expect, until he felt something incredibly supple press up against his mouth. _Wow… I… Wow. This is otherworldly. Quite literally, I guess._


End file.
